Statehouse employees take no vows of poverty.

The Statehouse 6-Figure Salary Club is growing.

The 124-member House employed 95 staffers as of Dec. 2, up from 91 as of mid-October 2018.

The 46-member Senate – less than half the size of the House – had 114 staffers to start the month, compared to 110 last year.

40 staffers in the House and Senate earn at least $100,000 annually, up from 27 last year.

The highest-paid is acting House clerk Charles Reid, who makes $212,250.

Patrick Dennis, the House’s general counsel is paid $212,000.

3rd-highest paid is Senate clerk Jeff Gossett who makes $210,136.

In comparison, as of May 2018, the average annual salary for chief executives in SC private industry was $182,760, according to US Bureau of Labor estimates.

The average annual wage last year was $43,210.

The House employs 81 staffers earning at least $50,000 annually, up from 75 last year. The Senate has 72 workers in the $50,000-plus group, up from 68 in 2018.

The House and Senate also use college students as part-time pages. The House has up to 144 pages “for any necessary service.”

The House and Senate annual budgets continue to grow each year.

The House plans to spend $22.7 million with a $250,000 increase.

The Senate will spend $16.3 million with hikes of $250,000 and $1.25 million.

None of this includes massive surpluses in the House of $23.3 million a Senate surplus of $5.2 million.

Other top House pay:

• Daniel Boan, chief of staff $166,200

• Emma Dean, chief counsel $154,000

• Steven Davidson, chief legal counsel $151,000

• Pierce McNair, director of research $149,000

• Donald Hottel, assistant clerk $145,500

Other top Senate pay:

• Michael Shealy, budget director, Finance Committee: $176,181

• John Hazzard, counsel to the president $169,646

• Ken Moffitt, assistant research director $156,392

• Angie Willis, assistant research director $143,056

• Andy Fiffick, Judiciary Committee $137,700

Brundrett is the news editor of The Nerve. Contact him at 803-254-4411 or rick@thenerve.org .